Family Asking for Help
This sweet baby needs some help. It’s the end of the year. Would you consider helping this tiny little one? If you can’t donate, can you at least share? The family would appreciate the love and support.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/rockin-robins-tof-heart-surgery/share?mibextid=Zxz2cZ
New Podcast Episode
Don’t forget to subscribe to tune in. Here’s several ways that you can TUNE IN! If you want to hear the thrilling conclusion of “Custom Justice” you don’t want to miss an episode from now through August!
On Spotify
On Anchor
Apple Podcasts
Google Podcasts
https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy8yNjllNTBlMC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==
Overcast
https://overcast.fm/itunes1518870187/amanda-blackwood-the-survivor
Castbox
https://castbox.fm/channel/id3014709?country=us
Pocketcasts
Radio Public
COMING SOON: Amazon Podcasts!
Contest Winners!
As promised, I have drawn the winners! The following people will receive a free copy of my autobiography, “Custom Justice” when they send their mailing address to me at
authoramandablackwood@amandablackwoodthesurvivor
If you’d like to be notified of any future competitions or contests to win free stuff from me, just subscribe to my newsletter. In doing so, you’ll receive a free ebook! In the future there will be more winners to more contests, and you never know what I’ll be giving away. One of these days I’ll be giving away a book with some hand crafted tea and an original painting!
- Roxanne Duplisea
- Barbara Nelms
- Vicki Warner
- Tam Geasley
- Laura Luddington
- Sarah Beth Ramsey
To subscribe to the newsletter, just click here and put in your information. You’ll instantly have access to the Detailed Pieces of a Shattered Dream ebook for free!
The below original painting by me recently sold and was shipped to Canada. Sign up to the newsletter for a chance to win original art, books, and more!
New Style
I’ve spent the day up to my elbows in paint, trying to learn a new style, perfecting a style I learned only a couple weeks ago, creating a birthday present for a dear friend, and ignoring the growls of my empty stomach. I’m covered in paint, starving hungry, and waiting patiently for my awesome husband to get home so we can eat homemade meatball subs.
Oh. And I suck at palette knife painting.
Wild Animals
Do you ever see wild animals?
Living in Colorado has become a sort of adventure for me. Sometimes I don’t leave the house for days (sometimes that’s because it’s snowing and I hate the snow, and sometimes it’s because I’m busy painting or writing and can’t be bothered to mess with the real world). However, when I do get out and about, it’s not too uncommon to see some sort of wildlife. Lately, and pretty much every fall for the last few years, I’ve spotted wild turkey in the neighborhood! Sometimes it’s something as simple as a squirrel on the back fence or a hawk flying overhead scouting for delicious squirrel. But every now and then we have a special treat.
Not long ago my husband and I drove up to Idaho Springs to visit my favorite little tea and spice shop. They have this espresso steak rub that is to die for and worth the drive. On the way up we saw some buffalo grazing along the side of the road. I never would’ve pictured something like that happening when I lived in California! I guess Colorado really is in the Wild West still – at least in some parts.
When we drove to Oklahoma over Thanksgiving week, we drove by a massive herd of Pronghorns (often referred to as antelope, though they aren’t antelope at all!). I was looking for elk, mule deer and big horn rams on the way down but wasn’t lucky enough to see them this time. That hasn’t always been the case.
But it’s this time of year every year when the elk migrate through (and stick around in) Estes Park, Colorado. If you’ve never been there, and if you’re planning a trip to Colorado, I have to say that’s the best place on the planet to see the elk. They know the closer they get to town, the less likely they’ll be hunted. They learned this behavior over the last few decades. The hunters head up the mountains, the elk head down.
I love living out here and seeing the wildlife, hearing the random owl in the middle of the night, and even being terrified at a fox’s scream at 1am (to a degree).
What’s the most recent wild animal you’ve seen?
Today I’d like to share a special message with you from author Jami Christine.
Jami was kind enough to join me on my podcast. We recorded her episode back in September, and what a remarkable woman she is.
Jami Christine was planning an at home birth for her first child. She had an overwhelming fear of hospitals, and a deep desire to give birth naturally. Unfortunately, life often pokes holes in the best made plans. Her son got stuck while Jami was in labor and she was sent to the hospital anyway. Jami found herself shutting down emotionally and mentally, and everything she did NOT want to happen, started to happen. She completely shut down emotionally and found herself completely disconnected during the c-section. Things only got worse from there for a while.
“My experience with trauma happened in 2011, when my dreams for a home birth with my first son got swept out from under me after my midwife detected a problem with his heart rate. After experiencing every intervention that I wanted to avoid, ending with an emergency c-section and a five-day stay at the hospital, I emotionally and mentally shut down and refused to believe what was happening to me.
“I was miserable, volatile, and borderline suicidal, and I realized I was turning out to be a terrible mother to my son in this condition. I joined a support group for cesarean moms, who then pointed me in the direction of counseling, and I began my journey to recovery. It took about two years to really overcome the brunt of it, but it required ongoing work beyond that, as well.
“I realize my downfall was my lack of flexibility. I refused to accept that anything other than a home birth was possible, and so when a trip to the hospital happened, I didn’t know how to cope. One of my greatest lessons in this experience was the importance of accepting things as they happen. This is my advice to new mothers, too — there’s no way to prepare for a birth, so keep an open mind and be willing to go with the flow, and no matter what, STAY PRESENT. When I emotionally and mentally shut down in that hospital, my brain had a lot of work to do to recalibrate my emotions with my physical experience, and I learned later that that’s what causes flashbacks: our brains keep trying to sync all that information up, and it results in replaying the trauma over and over in our minds.
“I later had a stroke, and that trip to the hospital was very different. Naturally I was scared, but I also had a new awareness that everything happens for a reason, and everything was going to work out the way it was meant to. I remained present in the experience, and I never experienced a trauma response afterwards. I also made a full recovery. This experience opened my eyes to the importance of acceptance, of presence, and of trust.
“These experiences inspired my novel, The Transcendent, which is due to release early next year. I also published a nonfiction, Transcend Your Story: A Guide to Transforming Your Healing Journey into an Inspirational Novel. My hope is that this book can help other aspiring authors take their own traumatic experiences and transform them into a story of healing and growth that can go on to inspire others on their own journeys. You can learn more about my books and my offerings on my website, www.JamiChristine.com.”
Thank you Jami, for all that you do.
Follow Jami Christine online
@authorjamichristine (FB & IG),
@jamichristine11 (TikTok),
www.JamiChristine.com
Do you have an amazing story?
Have you written about it?
Get interviewed. Send an email to
AuthorAmandaBlackwood@gmail.com
First Voiceover Work
I was given the amazing opportunity of lending my voice for a character come to life in a comic book, and WOW, was that fun! You guys, you gotta check this out. I’m the voice of “Lady Jaye” and I’m so proud!
Military vet who served in the Baghdad ER.
Today’s guest is Dacia Arnold. Dacia is an army veteran who served in Baghdad ER For 15 months during the surge. She was published in the New York Times and Full Magazine Volume III. She’s written about her experiences and I’m honored to have her on the show! This episode is a one hour special dedicated to Veterans Day. To all those who have, who are, or who will serve in one of the branches of the US Military, THANK YOU for your service to your country. Your honorable sacrifice is greatly appreciated.
Listen to the episode:
https://anchor.fm/amandablackwood
Follow Dacia Arnold online
http://www.Facebook.com/daciamarnold
http://www.instagram.com/daciamarnold
http://www.tiktok.com/daciamarnold0
http://www.twitter.com/daciamarnold
http://www.DaciaMArnold.com
If you know someone who survived trauma and wrote their own story of survival, please have them reach out to the podcast with their contact information by emailing AuthorAmandaBlackwood@gmail.com .
You can also use this link to leave a message that you’d like to have aired on a future episode! https://anchor.fm/amandablackwood/message
As always you can support the podcast with PayPal or Venmo donations, or by purchasing one of my books!
PayPal authoramandablackwood@gmail.com
Venmo @DetailedPieces
Find my books HERE. https://www.amazon.com/Amanda-Blackwood/e/B078T1V8M7?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_2&qid=1659462720&sr=8-2
Sign up for the newsletter and receive a FREE copy of “Detailed Pieces of a Shattered Dream” today! https://dl.bookfunnel.com/oui64pgchc
Get access to previous seasons of the podcast with a subscription! Advertisement free episodes!
https://anchor.fm/amandablackwood/subscribe
She fought trafficking while in the military, and you’ll love what she’s up to now.
Jasmine is a personal hero of mine and I don’t believe you’ll be surprised when I tell you why. Not only did she survive unspeakable assaults while in the military, but this incredible woman did a lot of counter trafficking work when she was in the military, too. She worked with Intel mostly, so she didn’t get to talk to many of the survivors. She’s struggled with self-hate and despair thinking about the ones they couldn’t get to in time – which I can certainly relate to. It’s called survivor’s guilt for me. I call it “Schindler’s Syndrome” in the case of incredible people like Jasmine. No matter how many people someone saves, they always believe there could be just one more. But a hero is a hero, and Jasmine, you are incredible. On behalf of survivors around the world, thank you for everything you’ve done. WE LOVE YOU.
LISTEN TO THE PODCAST:
Follow Jasmine Shouse online!
Website: jasmineshousewriting.com
Tiktok: @jazzyjbox
Twitter: @jazzyjbox
If you know someone who survived trauma and wrote their own story of survival, please have them reach out to the podcast with their contact information by emailing AuthorAmandaBlackwood@gmail.com if they’d like to be featured on the show! You can also use this link to leave a message that you’d like to have aired on a future episode! https://anchor.fm/amandablackwood/message
As always you can support the podcast with PayPal or Venmo donations, or by purchasing one of my books.
PayPal authoramandablackwood@gmail.com
Venmo @DetailedPieces
Find my books HERE. https://www.amazon.com/Amanda-Blackwood/e/B078T1V8M7?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_2&qid=1659462720&sr=8-2
Sign up for the newsletter and receive a FREE copy of “Detailed Pieces of a Shattered Dream” today! https://dl.bookfunnel.com/oui64pgchc
Get access to previous seasons of the podcast with a subscription! Advertisement free episodes! https://anchor.fm/amandablackwood/subscribe
Shop the ABTS Etsy for books, art, and more! https://www.etsy.com/shop/LadyBlackwoodShop
Amanda Blackwood the Survivor 